How to make homemade LARA Bars

I love LARA bars! I think they are the perfect mid-morning snack (or meal 2 if you are on any of the DAMY plans). My clients share my affection for these little bars of goodness as well. They are great for many reasons: They are easy to throw in your purse when you are in a hurry, you can pack them easily for the kids, and they satisfy the sweet tooth. LARA Bars are: GLUTEN FREE, DAIRY FREE, SOY FREE, and VEGAN. These sweet pieces of heaven are made of basic natural ingredients, fruits and nuts. It doesn’t get any simpler. Each bar provides you with a great source of fiber, healthy fats and some protein. All-around they are wonderful and give you the boost of clean energy your body is craving.

NEW – If you love LARA Bars you will love these creative LARA Bar-like Recipes. Here you will find a variation of Larabar cookies, truffles, bites and even blizzards! Enjoy!

How to make homemade LARA Bars

Here I have included the recipes for some of my favorite flavours of LARA Bars. This is for anyone that feels the bars are a bit pricey or like me, has one almost daily (my husband always has at least one per day). I just can’t get over how easy they are to make. You honestly can not go wrong! You have to try to make them. You will be hooked and so will your family.

I have also included a “build your own LARA Bar section” for you to get creative and make your own LARA Bar flavor creations.

*Some of the recipes included fall more under the “treat” category (the varieties that include chocolate) but these are defiantly a healthy treat option. The rest can be eaten daily as a mid morning snack!

Peanut Butter and Jam

1/4 cup cherries

1/4 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

1/2 cup raw peanuts

1 tbsp creamy natural peanut butter

Pinch of sea salt

Place the dates and cherries in a food processor. Blend until it becomes like a paste. Transfer blended dates and cherries to a bowl.

Add the nuts to the processor and pulse until chopped fairly small (but not too much, not nut flour. You want texture). Add the nuts, along with the sea salt, to the bowl with the fruit paste. Use your fingers to knead the nuts into the paste. Next you can spread the mixture out onto a plate covered in cling wrap. Using your hands mold the mixture into individual bars. Wrap each separately in plastic wrap or in small ziplocks. It is a good idea to refrigerate the bars after making to maintain freshness and let the form set (try to let them set in the fridge for 20 minutes before you eat one).

*Some like to just roll these into ball shapes and use them as “power balls” for on the go, pop in your mouth snacking. You are free to do that as well! I know some children that prefer to have them in the ball shape. You can use a cookie cutter and get all kinds of fancy with this. I prefer just the bar shape but do what suits you and your family.
*If you find your Larabars are a bit crumby add a couple tbsp of warm water and process again.

**For the recipes below, follow the same instructions as above, but substitute the different ingredients and measurements. All recipes make 2-3 bars. Feel free to double the recipes to make more.

Blueberry Muffin

1/4 cup dried blueberries

1/4 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

½ cup cashews

1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Cashew cookie

1/2 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

1/2 cup whole raw unsalted cashews

a dash of sea salt

Key Lime Pie

1/2 cup cashews

1/2 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

dash of sea salt

Zest of 1 lime

1/2 tbsp lime juice

1/3 cup shredded coconut

Almond Cookie

1/3 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

1/2 cup almonds

dash of sea salt

1/4 tsp vanilla

Peanut Butter Cookie

1/2 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

1/4 cup cashews

1 tbsp natural peanut butter

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup peanuts

Chocolate Coconut Macaroon

1/3 cup cashews

1/4 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

3 tbsp dark chocolate

1/8 tsp salt

1/4 cup shredded coconut

Cherry Pie

1/4 cup Dried Cherries

1/4 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

1/3 cup almonds (unsalted)

2 tsp cinnamon

Pecan Pie

1/2 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

1/4 cup almonds

1/4 cup pecans

1/4 tsp vanilla

Cookie Dough

1/2 cup Salted Cashews

1/3 cup Seedless/Pitted whole Dates

1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

dash of Sea Salt

1 tbsp Organic Chocolate Chips

Here are the official LARA Bar flavors

Apple Pie

Banana Bread

Blueberry Muffin

Carrot Cake

Cashew Cookie

Cherry Pie

Chocolate Chip Brownie

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Chocolate Coconut Chew

Cinnamon Roll

Coconut Cream Pie

Ginger Snap

Key Lime Pie

Lemon Bar

Peanut Butter & Jelly

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip

Peanut Butter Cookie

Pecan Pie

Tropical Fruit Tart

Feel free to get creative and make your own LARA Bars in your favorite flavors! You really can not go wrong making these little bars of goodness. Here are some ingredients for you to choose from when creating your own!

Build your own LARA Bar menu

When making 2-3 bars use ½ cup of nuts and/or seeds on their own or in combination.

Nuts and Seeds you can use:

Pumpkin seeds

Peanuts

Almonds

Walnuts

Pecans

Cashews

Pistachios

Base Pastes:

When making 2-3 bars use ½ cup of the dried fruit on their own or in combination (* I would always suggest to use some dates to make sure you achieve the desired consistency.

Dates

Figs

Raisins

Dried Cranberries

Dried Apricots

Dried Blueberries

Dried pineapple

Dried Papaya

Prunes

Dried apple

Flavorings and Extras:

When making 2-3 bars use ½ tsp of extracts, a teaspoon or so of the spices and 1 tbsp of the zests and juice depending on how much flavor your would like.

Shredded Coconut

Ground Flax

Lime Zest and Juice

Lemon Zest and Juice

Orange Zest and Juice

Vanilla Extract

Almond Extract

Ginger Spice

Cinnamon

Pumpkin Pie Spice

Dark Chocolate (for the treat variety)

Mint Extract

Coco Powder

Sea Salt

Natural Peanut Butter

Let me know what you create with this “build your own LARA Bar” menu. I would love to hear from you in the comments below.

If you love Larabars you will love these Protein Balls, Bars and Desserts!

***It was a very special day here at DAMY Health. Our Lifetime membership awards were given out to 5 very special DAMY Health Program Members. Once a year we award 5 ladies that have been with us a long time and represent what DAMY is all about. They stuck to their goals, celebrated others success and embody such a wonderful attitude! Congrats again ladies and thank you for being such amazing ambassadors for the DAMY Health Programs.

What is your favorite mid-morning snack?

Sabrina

I like the coconut maccaroon idea! So going to try it this week! Thanks

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

That is great! These bars are amazing!! You will love them! Enjoy!

Nursenadine01

Looks yummy! In the first recipe (PB &J) it calls for cranberries, then in the directions it says cherries. Just wondering which to use and if it is dried or fresh. Thanks!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

You can use either! They are both great! ( I have tried both! )

And that would be dried!

Enjoy!

Kelli Slitzker

Hi Amy! Me and my 2 girl friends made these tonight for our volleyball tournament we’re going to. They are very yummy! We will be making them again! We made the Peanut Butter and Jam ones. So delicious!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Hey girl!

So happy you enjoyed them! Aren’t they the best? Thank you so much for sharing! Hope you have a great Saturday! xo

Kelli

Thanks girl! You too! They all insisted that I send them the recipe too! Where did you come up with this?

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Just in my kitchen! Feel free to send them to this post.

Sdelpkseitz

I love the peanut butter ones. My daughter now asks me to make them for her track meets and invitationals. I just roll them into balls, grab and go……. Perfect snack!!!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

That is wonderful to hear!!! They are so great for the quick to grab fuel! Thank you so much for sharing!! I love to hear it!! Hope you had a great day!

sarah

i made the cashew cookie and pb&j ones tonight – so delish! and it only cost me about 5 bucks to make 10 bars. love it!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

That is awesome Sarah!! I love to hear it. Isn’t it a great deal?? I just love making my own too! Thank you so much for sharing!! Hope you had a great weekend!

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=304703347 Stacey Laviolette

Thats what i was going to ask….are they cheaper then buying the bars on their own?

I have to be gluten free, dairy free, soy free, corn free, rice free and peanut free. When I seen the Larabar I had to try them and they are sooo yummy only problem was my variety pack comes with peanut ones…so when I seen these recipes I had to try making them and yum yum yum!!! Thank you so much for sharing its hard finding recipes for something soooo yummy

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Hey!

That is so wonderful! I am so happy that you have enjoyed these! Have a great week!

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=840604661 Jessica Simmons

Hi Amy! Imagine my surprise when I googled homemade Lara Bars and came across your site! It has been a LONG time since we have seen each other but I’m always reminded of you whenever I walk by your old cottage at the beach. Thanks for sharing and looking forward to reading more!

Jessica (Jed’s sister)

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Hey Jessica!! So nice to hear from you! I bet it was a surprise for you. I hope you and your family are wonderful. I still miss Jackson’s Point I hope you are enjoying the summer,
Take care and thanks for stoping by!

Thanks so much for this! How long do you think these bars stay fresh and “edible”? Thanks!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Hey Kendra! I can’t say that our bars last too long around here! lol But I have stored mine in the fridge or freezer for 2 weeks! Hope that helps! Have a great day!

itsdi

these are delicous! thank you!!!! I do have a question – because I have to log my daily fat and calories, I was wondering if you think these have the same fat and calories as the original? or have you ever added up nutritional info of the different recipes? thanks again!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Thanks so much! We love these recipes here. DAMY Health was created partially from my life experience and partially from my education. Here we are completely count-free. We eat whole, natural food diets within reasonable portion sizes, timings, etc. We do not count calories, fats, etc. Instead, we eat balanced whole food diets. If you want to learn more about us and why choose to live count-free feel free to click on the Amy Layne page above and take a look at my story.

I came across your site while looking for deals on boxes of Larabars, I assumed that I could probably make them myself looking at the ingredients BUT the experimenting part of that scared me. I was so excited to see all of your recipes. I made some bars tonight in my food processor.
I used 10 oz of pitted dates, a cup of raw almonds, a heaping 1 tbsp of cocoa powder, 3 tbsp natural peanut butter (no sugar), a 1/4 tsp salt, and about a 1/4 cup raisins because i was out of dates and the mixture looked a little dry still :). They are delicious! I can’t have dairy or sugar so the choc. chips wouldn’t work for me. My boys even tried them and said they taste like Peanut butter cups, and I agree. The recipe made about 12 larabar sized bars.

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

That sounds great. If you find your mixture is ever dry adding 1 tbsp of warm water at a time until you reach your desired consistency is an awesome tip. Glad you loved them!

Cynthia_e_john

I found this link on Pinterest and posted the link on my FB page! I have been dying for the Cherry Pie Lara bars but they are hard to find in my small town. I didn’t have dates at my grocery so I used prunes instead and they turned out just as good at the Lara bars, not sure what that does to the calorie count or nutrition. To be honest, taste is why I like the Lara bar and this is just an amazing recipe, thank you for your work!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Sounds awesome Cynthia. A great way to switch up and make due with what you have. As long as you are eating whole, natural foods I wouldn’t worry about the rest.

These are AWESOME!! I made the blueberry and key lime pie flavors this weekend and they are so yummy! Thanks for sharing your recipes!!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

You are so welcome!! SO happy you made them and loved them!! Have a great week!

Ashley

As a recent Larabar addict, and a cook to boot, these are DEE-licious, and couldn’t be easier to make. I do an equal part dates/fruit/nut combo and find this works the best for me. I looooooove all the flavour combos you’ve posted for us! I’ve already forwarded this on to many friends, and have had nothing but great feedback. I gave up desserts for Lent, so these are the perfect little sweet-snack. Thanks!

This is fantastic! I have recently been introduced to Larabars, and as someone recently diagnosed as having gluten intolerance (along with several other food sensitivities), I’ve been looking for healthy, gluten free snack foods that I can enjoy. These are prefect. Thank you so much for sharing!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

You are so welcome! Hope you look around and find more gluten free yummy snacks on the site you love! Have a great week!

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1457537430 Mark Gailmor Ⓥ

Why are you using cranberries in your cherry pie recipe? When did cranberries begin to taste like cherries? They don’t. Could this be a mistake?

I’ve heard so much good stuff about these lara bars but they don’t seem to sell them out of the states so now I can give them a go! woohoo.

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Enjoy!

Chris

Great site! Curious why you list cranberries for the cherry pie recipe? Also noticed no cherries in your “roll your own” list of pastes. Bad experience with the round red nugget of fruity goodness?

ELIZYDRAGON

THANK YOU FOR THE SHARE OF RECIPE LOVE THEM AND EASY TO MAKE

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

You are so welcome!!! Have a great day!

Mgeorge86

I made the almond cookie bars last night, let them set up in the fridge overnight and just tried a little bite – they are fabulous!! I might have to have someone hide them before I eat all of them! They were fast and easy to make and came together with no problem. Thanks for sharing such great stuff!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

You are so welcome! Thank you :)

Kara

YUM! Can’t wait to try these, I do love Larabars. I was thinking of making these for a backpacking trip. would they hold up without refrigeration? will putting them in my food dehydrator help keep them, or will that just make them brittle and hard? Thanks in advance for any suggestions…

I love this recipe! Our first batch was the Cherry Pie and the second was the Blueberry Pie. Both were wonderful but the Blueberry Pie….AMAZING!!! Next, I want to try a Pomegranate White Chocolate. We make these into 6 snack sized balls and keep them in the fridge, my boys think they are a special treat:-) Even my parents in FL are making these now….so fun and so addicting. Thank you for the wonderful recipes, I can’t wait to keep trying them

This sounds wonderful, I was especially happy to find a recipe for the Peanut Butter and Jelly bars, but it is a little unclear to me as to where to add the 1 tbsp of natural peanut butter? Do we add the peanut butter while kneading the cherries, nuts, and salt?

1/4 cup of pitted dates is not enough it doesnt even make enough paste for 1 bar :O and the recipes yeald for 2-3 bars :C

BellaBella

All of the recipes call for a total of 1/2 cup dried fruit (for example, the Cherry Pie recipe asks for 1/4 c. dates, 1/4 c. cherries). Together these make up the paste. A little bit goes further than it looks like it will. Plus, store bought Lara Bars are tiny things. I’ve made several of these recipes now and each one has made 2-3 bars (usually 2 and a bit). If you want to make more, just double, triple, quadrulple the recipe.

Megan

At any point do you need to puree anything? Such as the dates? Also what type of blender/puree machine do you have? I love the homeade Lara bar idea and it comes with perfect timing as I was just looking into buying the magic bullet or something similar.

Made the cookie dough bars last night…OMG they were amazing. My hubby loves them and shared with all my friends and they want the recipe too. Thanks, love all your recipes

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

So glad you loved them Jenn!

McKenna

I just finished making the cookie dough bars (the first Larabar I ever had, so I saw it fit to make it the first mock larabar I’ve had). It was fantastic! Although, the recipe listed only had 1/3 cup dates, and was missing the remaining fruit to really make it bind, so I added a couple dried black mission figs. It was perfect! I’m thinking about making the coconut macaroon ones next, as my dad loves coconut and see if I can trick him into eating them

We love these, thank you! I have made the chocolate chip cookie dough ones twice and both times it was way too much salt. Like, not edible. So I thought you might want to check that. I had to triple or quadruple the rest of the ingredients to tone the salt down. Thank you for the inspiration.

Jennifer

Has anyone tried making the Carrot Cake larabar?

Cynthia Schneider

Nope, but I’m going to! I’ll let you know how well it turns out!

Sam

Do these need to be refrigerated?

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

If you are storing them for a longer then a week your should put them in the refrigerator

I am on the whole 30, so I have been eating LARA bars a lot for an easy snack. I just KNEW i could make them myself with such a simple ingredient list! Thank you to your post it gave me the confidence to try! I used Dates, Prunes (with cherry), almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, and cinnamon. My first batch of nuts came out too “flour”y … but good thing i didn’t throw away the nut flour, because when i was done shaping the bars with the beter nut mixture, i dipped them in the nut flour and it gave it a great texture! And I used more nuts than the traditional bar, so it had more texture! MY ENTIRE FAMILY went “nuts” for them!!! Cant wait to try my almond butter bars now!

I just made these and they are awesome! I would have never think of making Lara Bars at home. I bought a bunch of different ingredients and my first try was Peanut Butter and Jam recipe. I used prunes instead of dates, because I’ve never had prunes. These bars are delicious, can’t wait to bring them to work as snack.. Thank you!!!

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

That is so great to hear I hope you are having a wonderful day!

alana

Love love love!! So do my kids. I always double the recipe to make 6 bars. I found a very easy, clean way to press and shape them too. I divide the mixture into three saran wrap lined 1/2 cup square plastic dishes. Then loosely cover each with a second piece of saran. Next, using a fourth container of the same exact fitting shape, press down to fill the bottom evenly with the mixture. When done pressing the bars, pull out of the square dish using the overhanging plastic. Place on a cutting board and cut the square in half to make single serving portion. Wrap each new rectangle individually and place back in the container used to shape and press. I was able to get all six back into one container fitted with lid to store in fridge.

Ribbon

THANK YOU for that tip. I feel like I everything I try to use to shape my bars never works out and it always looks terrible and amateur. Your idea is so simple, I can’t believe I never thought of that! I’m excited to make another batch of bars just so I can try that out!

Just made the almond bars but I added chia to it (3 Tbs) and I LOVE them! So does my oldest daughter and I’m so glad that you posted these recipes. Can’t wait to try more of them out.

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

That is so great Wendy!

Jennie

I made 2 different types of Lara balls for the first time.) the 1st batch was: peanut butter, almond butter, dark chocolate chips, almonds, cashews, dates,& coconut oil. That batch came out way too sticky. So the second batch had: dates ,cranberries, cashews, macadamia nuts white chocolate chips, coconut oil, cinnamon, and vanilla. That batch was perfect. Thank you for sharing this recipe’ I look forward to creating new flavors:)

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Great!

Shae Love Lassman

This is probably going to sound really weird to most people, but I am
odd…Anyway, I have a variety of dietary issues and I REALLY wanted to
love Larabars when I found them, but, tragically, I don’t. There’s a
funky taste to them and I think I figured it out once I read through the
recipes. I do not care for my fruits to be mixed with much of anything
at all. Is there something other than fruit I can use in place of the
fruit paste? I would be eternally grateful to anyone who would help me
out as I am struggling not only with a GERD-friendly, grain free, dairy
freer and rawer diet, but also my traditionally unhealthy American
palate I’ve been struggling as I was brought up by parents who believed
that canned vegetables were really healthy, ketchup was a vegetable and a
peanut butter and jelly sandwich (sugary and junky peanut butter and
jelly, FYI) was a complete meal. LOL SAVE ME!!!

Kendra Ashleen

@Shaylovelassman. The funny taste comes in part because they are not fresh from the store but I recommend dates, peanuts and chocolate chips using the same amounts in the above recipes. You could use any type of nut really such as cashew, almond, hazelnut, or macadamia. I recommend dark chic as there is less sugar and a more concentrated flavor. Don’t like dark? Use semi sweet. The sweetness of the dates makes up for the difference in both the dark and semi sweet. You need the dates as a binder but you could use peanut, almond or cashew butter and add some flour ( any type of flour) or potato starch to make it more solid. Make the nut butter yourself. Just nuts and a food processor. I would use agave nectar to sweeten the nut butter type.

I figured up the price and they are roughly 62 cents each bar made this way. Compared to the $1-$1.25 everywhere else I’ve seen them

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Awesome!

Michelle

Thank you so much for these recipes! I’ve been looking for ages for recipes for protein bars that don’t need protein powder due to dietary restrictions and here you have a whole range! Thank you again!!

I really want to try these, but my son has a nut allergy so I have to keep nuts out of my home. I see the only option on the list is pumpkin seeds, what about sunflower seeds. We eat those a lot around here but I know they do soften when moist. Would sunflower seeds work in these recipes to replace the nuts?

http://www.damyhealth.com Amy Layne

Hey Jennifer! Yes! Any seeds that is ok for your Son will work great. You just may need a bit more to get the right consistency.

Sefa

I used sunflower seeds and it worked great for me. Just dates Choco chips and sunflower seeds. Yum!

Michelle Goodrich

Theses do not require a liquid like oil or water? Thank you for the build your own list.

Sefa

My school is nut free so I used sunflower seeds dates and Choco chips… Came out amazing:) I love these bars! Thanks for posting these recipes!

Genny

I made cashew almond mocha bites using both nuts, 1 tsp. Unsweetened cocoa powder, vanilla and a pich of finley ground coffee. They were delicious!

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Great program! I would recommend it to anyone who is looking to fine tune their body or just get back in shape after having babies – that was me :). Coach Amy is very helpful and was always willing to help tweek my program for my injuries and other reasons I needed any modifications.— Kelli

Amy Layne CPT, CHN, Lifestyle Expert

Hi! I'm Amy Layne. Welcome. I am Co-Owner of DAMY Health Online and Coach Specializing in Holistic Nutrition, Fitness, Self-Love, Goal Realization, Inspiration and Living Your Best Life. I am also the creator of the world famous Bikini Body Program Online, Holistic Nutritionist, Personal Trainer, Lifestyle Guru, Health and Wellness Personality, Writer and Original Whole-Food Recipe Creator. In my past life I was an Aesthetician, Make-up Artist, and Owned my Own Spa. Yup, I do everything Health, Wellness and Beauty related! In the last 7 years I've changed my career, my luck, my body, my health, and my attitude. Life is amazing, who knew? Click here to read more!

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